Wow, what a goldmine of references to great articles. I know for years that I was a 3 season backpacker due to lack of gear and experience in winter hiking. The last three winters have been a joy, but I needed what this article taught to take me to the next level!

Excellent article! I especially appreciated the links to old articles. There's a lot of pure gold in the article archives waiting to be tapped! (Oops, mixed metaphor! Let's say "liquid gold" or "waiting to be mined.":)

For us Pacific Northwesterners, who even at higher altitudes are as liable to be in rain as in snow, some of the articles about hiking in cold rain are useful, too. This one is really good, IMHO:http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/lightweight_guide_to_backpacking_in_sustained_rain.html

Another great article, Dave. Your inclusion of the many links really turns this into a stand alone reference worthy of bookmarking. I had somehow missed a couple of the early articles the first time around and they gave me some things to think about.

As an aside, I've really been enjoying the new influx of technical articles in recent months. Thank you for your many contributions.

Good consciousness raising article. I've done some x-country day tripping in the Washington Cascades and enjoyed the seasonal contrast. Camping is a whole other order, but just some extra weight and bulk as far as base weight goes.

I think winter navigation is a daunting aspect for less experienced hikers, with the trail covered and landmarks blurred. It's not a good time to get lost. Honing up map and compass skills on dry ground makes excellent winter travel preparation.

Knowing your limits is important on winter trips. Turning around and going home is NOT failure, just good common sense. I haven't done multi-day backcountry snow trips. I would be prepared for much more physical exertion and knowing what the weather report means for your location. I would want to know more about reading avalanche conditions, as many of my favorite summer trails have slide chutes that aren't an issue after the thaw.

It can be beautiful. The mud and leaves are covered over, bare trees have snow covered branches, the air seems so pure, and everything sounds different in the snow. If you can escape the snowmobilers on the weekends, the solitude is wonderful.

One important thing for those of us in mountainous terrain--check the avalanche forecast before going out. It's important to learn to judge snow conditions and to judge the terrain so places where avalanches are likely can be avoided. If I'm going alone in the snow (I usually stay below the snow line in winter, but I'm considering taking up snowshoeing once more), I'll stay on flat ground, well away from any possible avalanche runouts (they can go a surprisingly long way).

Herman, the pack is a Mountain Hardwear Thruway 50. A review is part of a larger project I'm currently writing up. In short, it's got a lot of good stuff but needs a suspension redesign and longer torso lengths for each size to merit the price.

I agree with Michael R., this article is a "goldmine" of links to other winter camping articles.

And (IMHO) THE best book on the subject, especially for beginners, is "Allen & Mike's Really Cool Backcountry Ski Book".

Having taught winter survival to ARMY ROTC cadets for a few years I can say that it is almost a necessity for beginners to do their first winter trips with experienced winter campers. The crazy mistakes beginners make are usually laughable but could be very serious without a "guide".

On a personal note I am about two years away from becoming a National Ski Patrol Mountain Travel and Rescue instructor. Never stop learning.

Great article and the photos are fantastic. I live in Michigan where we get wet snow conditions, so I would have to revamp my equipment to take that into consideration (a synthetic sleeping bag, for instance).